Hydrogen and oxygen are ideal fuels for combustion and are both readily available in water if the bond holding them together can be separate efficiently. Two methods for separating hydrogen from oxygen have been used over the years including electrolysis, and separation via steam reforming. Both methods use tremendous amounts of energy and are therefore expensive and make powering an internal combustion engine from hydrogen cost prohibitive for common use. The second problem faced with utilizing the aforementioned method of producing hydrogen from water is that it must be stored until it is used. And, because it is highly flammable, great care must be taken to insure safe storage which further elevates the cost.
Another problem with storage is that hydrogen has such a low density that one cubic foot contains very little hydrogen! One pound of hydrogen at standard temperature and pressure takes up nearly the space of a small bathroom! This results in one cubic foot of hydrogen only containing around 320 Btu of energy. One million Btus would therefore take up around 3100 cubic feet, or 8 feet by 20 feet by 20 feet, the space of nearly half a small house full of hydrogen! The third major problem with hydrogen when stored in the gas form, the absolute need to compress it to get a sufficient amount of hydrogen down into a manageable space. Extremely high pressure tanks, at 3000 PSI, can hold around one pound of hydrogen (in a massive tank about the size and weight of a small person) or 60,000 Btu. So, 17 such tanks would be required for our one million BTUS of storage. Tanks have to be very sturdy and reliable (and heavy) to withstand 3,000 PSI of pressure, but another problem is that a really strong and expensive compressor is needed to compress the hydrogen to 3,000 PSI, (200 times normal atmospheric pressure) which again requires excessive energy consumption. If a 3000 PSI tank of hydrogen were in a vehicle, and that vehicle got into an accident, it would be very dangerous if the tank was damaged!
These problems are solved with this invention. Water is a safe and convenient way to store and transport hydrogen and has more stored energy by weight and volume than gasoline. High voltage high amperage electrical current can be generated with excess energy output of an internal combustion engine or even a jet powered, or rocket engine in sufficient quantity to simultaneously separate and ignite hydrogen which will robustly combust in the presence of oxygen also released in the process.
Another problem this invention solves is atmospheric pollution. The main by product of combustion of hydrogen and oxygen is water, not sulphur dioxide, nitric oxide, carbon dioxide and other harmful by products emitted from burning fossil fuels to power internal combustion engines, jet engines and rocket engines.
Coffey et al U.S. Pat. No. 20090235902 provided a simplified method for converting water into fuel for vehicles and power plants. Coffey's invention uses electrolysis of water with a 25% sodium hydroxide solution to convert water into 2 gases, H2 and O2; conducts these gases separately into a manifold where they are mixed and into a cylinder in a conventional engine where the gas mixture is fired with a spark plug. The resultant water vapor exits the engine in the form of steam. He then transfers the steam to power a steam turban engine before going to a condenser where it is condensed back into water form and cooled for reuse in his electrolyzer. The invention currently applied for eliminates the need for adding sodium hydroxide to water or even the need for hydrolysis to use water as a fuel. In fact, the invention applied for uses water as a fuel both in the form of gas or liquid. Coffee et al's invention uses H2 and O2 as 2 separate gases as they are molecules formed when electrolysis breaks the hydrogen oxygen bond and the atoms are free to recombine into molecules to become separate gases. The gas can then be ignited with a low amperage spark, but; heat is given off as the atoms disassociate as molecules through the conventional oxidation process and convert back to free atoms so they can recombine as H2O (water). It is well known in the art that a spark will not ignite water. In the invention applied for, the Hydrogen Oxygen bond is broken with an arc carrying much greater current than a spark and the arc fires the water directly; freeing and igniting hydrogen and oxygen in an atomic state which does not produce much heat. (See “Water Atomization by High Magnitude Electrical Impulses” a study by Powerlabs.org). The result is water not steam. That water can then be recycled without the need for condensing it from steam to liquid. The improvements the invention applied for over Coffey et al includes but is not limit to: 1. Eliminating the need to mix sodium hydroxide with water, 2. Eliminating the need for electrolysis, 3. Eliminating the need for handling flammable gases 4. Eliminating the need for condensing steam for water reuse and cooling the water so it can be electrolyzed. 5. Using hydrogen and oxygen as fuel on a more ideal 2 to 1 basis, 2 parts hydrogen to one part oxygen, the same ratio NASA uses to fuel its liquid hydrogen powered rockets. 6. Using water as a fuel in the form of a single gas, not 2 gases.
Moshure et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,251,175 presents a new and useful apparatus for generating hydrogen and oxygen with electrolysis, for conveying hydrogen and oxygen gas into an engine, collector cells for collecting hydrogen and an apparatus for preventing the generation of hydrogen when the engine is not running. The invention applied for is an improvement over Moshure et al because, all of Moshure et al's apparati are eliminated as a means to power an engine with water. In the invention applied for, water is fed directly into the combustion chamber of an engine and fired directly either as a gas or as a liquid.